Moose ‘most likely' a deer, Doc says
After two separate "moose" sightings in Fiordland by North American visitors in a matter of weeks, the Department of Conservation (Doc) said yesterday until there was photographic evidence to the contrary Doc would continue to hold the view there were no descendants of the moose released in Dusky Sound in 1910 left alive in the wild.
American visitors Norbert Nigon and Virginia Schuning said they saw a moose — the largest member of the deer family — on the track in the middle of March.
Then, only several weeks later, Canadians Annie-Pier Bourgeois, Antoine Beauchamp and Chanel Sabourin-Dubois said they saw one on March 29.
However, in neither case did the visitors take photographs of the animals they came across while on the Kepler Track last month.
Doc Te Anau operations manager John Lucas said the second report of a possible moose sighting was received by Doc on April 1.
"Once we verified it wasn't an April Fool's Day prank, we passed the information on to [longtime New Zealand moose researcher] Ken Tustin to follow up.
"Like others, whilst we are interested in this latest moose sighting, until we receive photographic proof to the contrary, we continue to take the view that we are most likely dealing with a deer, such as a red deer or possibly a red-wapiti cross that has been mistaken for a moose."
Moose were released in Dusky Sound in 1910, but it was believed they were now extinct in Fiordland, he said.
Many Otago Daily Times readers suggested the visitors were seeking attention, or "dreaming or smoking".
While there are no known moose living in New Zealand, Canadian charity Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society said there are about 1 million moose living in North America.
Nevertheless, Mr Tustin said he was encouraged by the reports of moose in Fiordland and he encouraged anyone who believed they had seen a moose to come forward.
The most telling aspects of both recent reports came in the description of the animal's colouring as it disappeared into the bush.
"Unlike red deer or elk, which display a distinctive pale rump patch easily visible when they flee, moose do not.
"Both sightings described animals with a uniform dark brown colour as it turned, with no mention of a white rump — a subtle but critical detail that strongly supports moose identification over other large species found in Fiordland," he said.
hamish.maclean@odt.co.nz
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